Former UFC fighter Cain Velasquez is set to start a managerial role at the latest MMA organization, GFL.
The promotion made this announcement on Friday in an official statement saying that the former UFC champion Cain Velasquez signed on with the promotion as a team manager. The 42-year-old has been out of the cage since 2019 after suffering a first-round knockout loss to Francis Ngannou. Since leaving MMA, the fighter tried his hand at professional wrestling. He partook in a six-man tag team with partners Pagano and Blue Demon Jr against opponents Taurus, Sam Adonis and Gringo Loco.
Despite his move to professional wrestling, it seems the fighter isn’t done with MMA. He has been signed on to help draft and coach GFL’s new teams. Assisting him is his associate, American Kickboxing Academy coach Javier Mendez.
“Cain Velasquez will be in some fighters’ corners that he’s with,” Javier Mendez stated in the video. “He is a joy to have. He is an unbelievable coach. I’m blessed to have him there at AKA daily with the guys. He’s a huge motivator. He’s becoming great at speaking speeches. And, he’s becoming great at talking to the fighters and the ins and outs. How to think, how to be a champion, he’s fantastic. I couldn’t ask for a better coach and friend than Cain.”
The announcement came as a bit of a shock as Velasquez is set to appear in court on Jan 24 for sentencing on murder charges. The fighter was charged with a felony, attempted murder, assault and multiple weapons-related offenses.
The incident took place in 2022 after the 42-year-old fired several shots at Harry Goularte, who was allegedly involved in molesting Velasquez’s four-year-old son. The altercation was a high-speed chase, and in the heat of the moment, Velasquez struck Goularte’s stepfather, Paul Bender, instead. The fighter was arrested and spent eight months before he eventually posted bail of $1 million in November 2022.
Despite his troubled past, GFL isn’t ready to put all that aside and take the fighter on as a member of their team. The promotion has already signed an impressive roster of over 300 fighters from top organizations like UFC, Bellator and PFL.
